"[4] For we speak as messengers approved by God to be entrusted with the Good News. Our purpose is to please God, not people. He alone examines the motives of our hearts (1 Thessalonians 2:4 NLT)."

This verse is a good reminder of how I should approach my attitude when it comes to service to others. Case in point, if I am serving someone in a simple way (offering to hold the door for someone that is carrying a package into a shipping store while I happen to be out walking during my work break), or volunteering to serve on a day off where I would rather lounge around and game, what is my motive? Am I helping/serving for the dopamine hit of a compliment or praise? Or am I doing it because I want my actions to point people towards Jesus and the selfless ways that He served others? Being appreciated is always nice of course, and I don't think it is wrong to enjoy the benefits of this. But serving others for the primary purpose of potential praise or being thanked personally takes away from what I believe God wants us to do - which is to be good to others in order reflect His own love for His children through our actions.

Lord, thank You for the reminder to remember who I am truly serving and seeking to honor when offering assistance to others - You. Please let my actions reflect Your glory, not mine. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.

*This chapter is part of "The Small Town Magic Arc." This saga began with Chapter 134*

Cyclo's sneak attack of fire was quickly snuffed out by an icy blast from the Pirate Mage's finger, which also froze Cyclo's hand in a block of ice.

"Now Cyclo dear, did you really think it would be that easy to take me down?" The Pirate Mage teased. "We didn't do this fusion just for looks. The Pirate's powers and Cerissa's magic are not only combined together in this form, but both are also enhanced."

"Cyclo's growled in anger as he struggled to pick himself up off the ground, succeeding despite the hits he had taken, and his frozen hand."

"I feel a bit sorry for you pal." The Pirate Mage teased playfully before gently thawing Cyclo's hand with a light burst of fire. "Feel better now?"

Cyclo howled and lunged at the Pirate Mage ferally. He swung his other fist at her, which she ducked under before grabbing his upper arm. She gave it a light squeeze, resulting in the combined sound of a cracking bone and a screaming monster. Despite his pain, he pointed at the Pirate Mage and attempted another direct hit with his fire spell. She fizzled out his attack with another ice spell, this time encasing Cyclo's whole arm in a block of ice. The Pirate Mage then somersaulted backward a few feet to distance herself from her foe.

"The first thaw was free, the next one will cost you!" The Pirate Mage joked before giving him a serious look. "Step down and surrender, and I'll heal both of your arms."

Before Cyclo could respond, the Pirate Mage began glowing a brilliant white. The white light then split into two separate forms. The light then slowly faded until the Pirate and Cerissa stood before Cyclo.

"Bwa ha ha ha, is time up on that fusion spell?" Cyclo hollered with delight, his adrenaline apparently blocking out the pain of his respective frozen and broken arms. "While the power of that combined form of yours was impressive, the two of you alone pale in comparison. I sense much less from each of you!"

"Perhaps, but man do you seem quite sure of yourself pal." The Pirate smiled. "You haven't even healed up those injuries yet. Need a moment to do so after you're done gloating?"

"Heh, I'm doing just fine!" Cyclo laughed as he charged towards the pair. The Pirate and Cerissa stepped aside, and as Cyclo attempted to turn around, he lost his balance and fell face down.

"You sure you got this Cyclo?" Cerissa asked with a sweet tone and smile. "Need some help healing up again?"

"I told you, I've never been better!" Cyclo yelled furiously, despite not being able to get up without the use of his arms.

Cerissa pointed at Cyclo and then pointed up, raising the monster into the air with a wind spell. As he floated helplessly in Cerissa's wind, it was the Pirate's turn to lunge, and he ran their adversary through with his sword. Cyclo looked helplessly at the pair as he felt his life fading away.

"Don't worry, you aren't going to die, you're just taking a trip to the Reflection Dimension." Cerissa said reassuringly. "Before you go, know that it wasn't the Pirate and I who truly finished you off."

Cyclo looked at the pair with a confused, weak expression. The Pirate read this as an unspoken request for clarification, and proceeded to provide one to their fallen nemesis.

"Cerissa's spell and my blade may have ended this fight, but this battle was decided a long time ago. Essie is the real reason we have defeated you."

To be continued....

A young woman dressed like a Pirate now stood before Jahno, smiling a sweet, yet bold smile. Jahno did a double take, and then he burst out laughing.

"What a wonderful waste of a fusion spell!" Jahno roared with laughter. "You turned down my offer and stalled me just to become a hot girl version of the Pirate? Amazing, ha ha ha ha!"

"True, if we have only fused in order to become a gender flipped variation of the Pirate, then this should be of no concern to you." The young woman said. Her voice wasn't soft like Cerissa's and it didn't have the rough yet smooth tone of the Pirate's, but she had a femine, confident tone that gave her words their own impact.

"No concerns here, but I look forward to dancing with you my dear." Jahno smirked. "So, what shall I call you while you are in this new persona?"

"You can call me the Pirate Mage. And don't worry, I will be sure to keep you entertained, but I hope you can also keep me amused. Come at me Jahno.... or better yet, come at me..... as Cyclo!"

"Absolutely, let's give this our best!" Jahno yelled with delight, as his body expanded back to the hulking form of the cyclops monster he originally started as. Jahno's eyes merged back into one eye, and his once charming, yet evil smile was once again a menacing, hideous one.

Cyclo charged at the Pirate Mage, laughing hysterically as he prepared to pounce. The Pirate Mage stepped back gently and grabbed the head of the airborne Cyclo, slamming him face first into the ground.

Rick, Essie, and Tamma all gasped at how quickly this slender new Pirate form had downed their monstrous foe. Cyclo got up from the ground and charged again, fuming with rage.

"I'm sorry sweetie, are you not entertained anymore?" The Pirate Mage bantered with a million dollar smile. She stopped Cyclo's rampage by gently pushing on his forehead with her hand, knocking him backwards onto the ground. She walked over to her downed opponent and looked him directly in the eye.

"Well Cyclo, or Jahno, or whatever you want to go by..... you are quite a disappointing dance partner. Do you agree that it may be time to sit this one out?"

"No." Cyclo smirked, as he pointed at the Pirate Mage and sent a blast of fire directly at her.

To be continued....

It's Valentine's Day, so it's time to drop some rhymes.

I love you so much, even more than the band Sublime.

I know this poem is cheesy, but I hope it will help you see,

That you are incredible, and you matter so much to me.

When things are good or not so good, please know I will always care,

Tough times still are better, thanks to you being there.

One more cheesy rhyme to go, the last thing I shall say,

Thank you for this life together, I love you forever and always, Happy Valentine's Day!

No matter how long we have been together, I feel like there is always something new I am going to learn about you.

No matter how long we have been together, I will accept that I will always need to put effort in for us, and I won't stop doing so.

No matter how long we have been together, I will always treasure the family and life we built.

No matter how long we have been together, I will always admire your hard work, your passion, your beauty, your heart.

No matter how long we have been together, I will always enjoy your laughter, even if it is directed at me. :-)

No matter how long we have been together, I will always look forward to snuggling up close to you in the beginning and ending of each day.

No matter how long we have been together, I will always praise God for blessing me with this life with you and ours.

No matter how long we have been together, I will always be grateful that you see the best in me, even if I can't see it yet.

No matter how long we have been together, I will always look forward to this time of year, one of my favorite days to celebrate with you.

Happy Anniversary my love. I love you, always and forever.

*This chapter is part of "The Small Town Magic Arc." This saga began with Chapter 134*

"You've already shown how much of a liar you are Mayor Aplonica, Cyclo, or whoever you truly are." The Pirate shot back. "Honestly, I bet you can't solve any of our problems even if you wanted to."

"Oh, I assure you this is the truth." Jahno responded with a grin. "Allow me to give you a sample."

Jahno pointed at the Pirate and pulled a small stream of dark liquid out of him. The liquid floated between the two of them.

"This is a sample of your blood that carries Glicko's curse. Now watch closely Pirate."

The liquid then swirled over Jahno. Jahno twirled his finger under the liquid, spinning it. Once he stopped moving his finger, the liquid had reverted back to clean, healthy looking blood.

"I have completely removed the toxin from your blood sample. Here, you can have it back."

The blood stream flew back at the Pirate, absorbing back into his body.

"That was just a sample, so not enough to remove the curse completely. Even so, I am capable of removing the rest of it from your system. Now it is your turn Rick. Do tell me if these folks look familiar."

Jahno summoned a virtual image out of his hand, revealing what looked like a shared common area of a college dormitory. Sitting on a couch was a middle aged man and woman, whose anxiety and fear was evident even without a single word being spoken by either of them.

"Mom! Dad!" Rick cried out. "Where is this, where are they?"

"I can't tell you too much before we have come to an agreement, but I can assure you that their captor is at least holding them in a comfortable living space." Jahno said reassuringly before making the virtual image vanish. "Now Cerissa and Essie, time to give you a taste of what I could return to you!"

Jahno pointed at the two mages, and two holographic like lock symbols floated out of their heads, resting above Jahno.

"These represent your memories that were taken away." Jahno explained calmly. "Your memories did not disappear completely, but appear to have been locked away within your minds by Glicko's spell. Unlocking these memories and returning them to you would be simple indeed. I shall open these slightly, and give you both a small fragment back of your memories."

A small white mist slipped out of both of the floating locks, one of each floating into Cerissa and Essie's heads. Almost immediately both of their eyes lit up, and they ran to each other and embraced.

"Cerissa, it is only a small detail I remember, but apparently we trained together as mages!" Essie gushed.

"Yeah, I only have a faint detail too, but I see my home village, and you're there!" Cerissa said excitedly as happy tears formed in her eyes.

"Awwwww, how sweet." Cyclo mocked, as he motioned for the two lock symbols to absorb back into the minds of the mages they came from. "As I have proven, I am more than capable of solving all of your problems, Pirate and crew. However, me bailing you out will not come for free. If I am to break Glicko's mutation curse, return Rick's parents, and unlock Cerissa and Essie's memories, I would require you to leave Aplonica and allow me to wipe the knowledge of this confrontation from the minds of my daughter and our people. I will clear the memory of this from your minds as well, so there will be no guilt hanging over you for taking what I feel is a superb deal. Tamma will forget who I really am, and I will be able to provide for her again as our people pay 'Cyclo' to keep Tamma and the village safe. And you my friends, will have everything you are fighting for taken care of. What do you say, heroes?"

"I'm sorry guys, I can't compete with an offer like that." Tamma said sadly. "I understand, and I hold no ill will if you choose to cooperate with my father."

Cerissa looked to the Pirate, Rick, and Essie, who each nodded approvingly. Cerissa then embraced Tamma, then turned toward Jahno. The Pirate joined her side, while Essie and Rick continued to stay close to Tamma.

"While I do believe you could truly do the things you say you could for us, we will never turn our backs on Tamma and Aplonica by accepting your deal." Cerissa said boldly, her soft tone not taking away any confidence that her words carried. "However, there is something I want to thank you for besides your kind offer."

"And what would that be?" Jahno asked in a bemused tone.

"You gave us enough time to prepare this." Cerissa smiled. "Take my hand now, Pirate!"

The Pirate joined his hand with Cerissa's, which now glowed a brilliant white. The white light then expanded, completely consuming the two. The light then faded as quickly as it had shone, revealing a new figure now boldly standing up to their adversary.

To be continued....

"Thankfulness is like a door to God's presence."

- Kendra Barrow, Vineyard Northwest

"Enter His gates with thanksgiving; go into His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name (Psalms 100:4 NLT‬)."

A Church I follow has an app (Crossroads Anywhere) where we journal together as a community, and one of the things we journal about are things we are thankful for. I wrote these based on prior prompts from the app. I hope these inspire you to reflect on what you are thankful for in your own life. :-)

1/6/2025

"What are you looking forward to this week?"

- Seeing my parents later this week.

- Working on my gaming backlog.

- Getting back into a normal routine again (once the snow clears anyway).

1/7/2025

"What are you grateful for today?"

- The warm embrace of my wife.

- Coffee.

- Getting to work safely this morning.

1/9/2025

"How did someone help you this week?"

- Our landlord helping us with a leak issue at home.

1/10/2025

Affirmation: "I can do all things through Christ Who strengthens me."

"Is there anything you would like to thank God for this week?"

Thank You God for helping me through a challenging work week (even though it was short, it packed a punch). Thank You for time with my parents this weekend, and for some fun to enjoy before taking on the first full work week of the new year.

*This chapter is part of "The Small Town Magic Arc." This saga began with Chapter 134*

"I was born with my powers, although they skip generations." Jahno replied with a smirk. "I have never met this Glicko you speak of, but apparently there is a story here. Do tell me what this fellow has done to become your archenemy."

"He has put a curse into the world that mutates people into monsters, my ex-wife being one of his victims." The Pirate answered. "He claims that it only happens to those who choose to do evil. Even so, people should not be forced to choose their conduct to avoid mutating."

"He wiped my memories, but left me with the knowledge that he is the one responsible." Cerissa added.

"My memories were also taken away, except for the fact that Glicko is the one who stole them." Essie said. "Cerissa and I have no memories of our past, and we are currently relearning our magic."

"Glicko kidnapped my parents to test his curse on them, based on their pure hearts." Rick said. "They were unaffected by the curse, but he won't release them due to them knowing about his plans."

"Wow, this guy really did a number on you all!" Jahno laughed gleefully. "So that's why you were so eager to face me, you thought I would bring you closer to this Glicko! Well I hate to disappoint you, but like I said, I have no connection to him whatsoever. If I did, he probably would have cursed me too!"

"Shut up." The Pirate said calmly, promptly stopping Jahno's laughter. "Yes, we would have loved to have gotten one step closer to stopping Glicko, but we came here to help Tamma regardless."

"Thank you." Tamma said softly, wiping her tears as Rick and Essie went to her side to support her.

"You know, I kind of like you guys." Jahno smiled. "Maybe I don't know your pal Glicko, but what if I told you that I have the capability of undoing all of the terrible things he did to you all?"

"I would say you're a liar, just like you've been doing to your own flesh and blood." The Pirate said heatedly.

"I assure you, I am being completely honest with you." Jahno said, no longer speaking in a mocking tone. "I can break the curse on your ex easily. I sense that curse within your own blood Pirate, and I could easily remove it. It would also be child's play for me to restore the memories of your mages, and return the teenage boy's folks back to him. However, I won't do these things for free. Shall we make a truce Pirate?"

To be continued....

*This chapter is part of "The Small Town Magic Arc." This saga began with Chapter 134*

The imposter posing as Jahno pointed at Tamma and laughed maniacally as she wept. The smile then faded from Cyclo's face as he pointed at the doppelganger of his human form.

"Useless minion!" Cyclo hollered as the fake Jahno suddenly found himself being pulled towards his boss. A laser blade shot out of Cyclo's finger and impaled fake Jahno. The imposter helplessly tried to grip the laser blade in a feeble hope of freeing himself, only to find his hands getting absorbed into the laser. He screamed as the rest of his body vanished into the laser, which then retracted back into Cyclo's finger. Cyclo's body then shrunk back into the size of a normal human as his features returned to those of the real Jahno.

"Dearest Tamma, please don't cry anymore, I did all of this to give you the life you deserve!" Jahno pleaded. "Precious daughter, a treasure like you should get the best of the best, including the mansion that has been in our family for generations. But you must realize sweetie, the money to maintain it had to come from somewhere!"

"So you created a monster alias and blackmailed our people to pay you to cover the mansion costs, all while pretending to be a helpless victim?" Tamma protested, standing up and trying to be strong, despite her tears continuing to flow. "I don't want the mansion.... never did! I just want to be like everyone else!"

"We aren't like everyone else, we are better than those commoners!" Jahno replied in disgust. "If you won't accept your rightful place in our family as the superior residents of Aplonica, then you leave me no choice!"

"What are you plotting now Cyclo, or Jahno, or whoever you truly are?" Rick said boldly, as he stood beside Tamma along with Essie, Cerissa, and the Pirate.

"Just what I've been doing all along." Jahno smirked. "I will simply wipe Tamma's memories of this, along with the other townsfolks' as well. Did you really think this was the first time Tamma, or anyone else in town has uncovered my dark secret?"

"You altered my memory?" Tamma cried out in horror. "All of this has happened before?"

"Too many times to count." Jahno laughed. "After all, if an outsider like this Pirate fellow could figure out who I really am so easily, did you really think that people we live with every day couldn't uncover it? But once I eliminate these wannabe heroes and clear your memory my sweet girl, then we can go back to the way things should be. You will only remember me as your loving father, doing all he can to protect his beautiful daughter from an evil monster!"

"This sounds similar to the amnesia Glicko gave us!" Essie cried out to Cerissa.

"You're right." Cerissa said in a troubled tone. "Just like our enemy, Jahno is also taking away memories and manipulating others as he pleases."

"I have a question for you Mr. Mayor." The Pirate calmly asked Jahno. "Where did you get your powers, including that cyclops transformation? Was it given to you by a warlock, or a man posing as a doctor? If that is the case, then you my friend are being used by our enemy Glicko."

To be continued....

"[28] You yourselves know how plainly I told you, ‘I am not the Messiah. I am only here to prepare the way for him.’

[30] He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less (John 3:28, 30 NLT)."

I love how John the Baptist didn't seek glory for himself, but wanted people to run to the glory of God instead. John had no qualms about people going to Jesus to be baptized over him (despite his namesake), and John was "filled with joy at his (Jesus') success (John 3:29)." This is an attitude I want to incorporate into my own life. Should any success I have inspire someone, I want people to know that it is all thanks to the blessings and gifts God has put in my life. I want to want Him to get the glory, and I want to want eyes to go on God and not me. This is easier said than done, as getting attention for the things I do well in is certainly addictive and makes me feel good, but I don't want this to be my prime motivation for using the talents and abilities God has empowered me with.

Lord, thank You for once again giving me something to ponder and work on due to journaling about Scripture. Please forgive me for the times I get prideful when I succeed thanks to the gifts that You have given me. Please help me to be better about pointing to You in these accomplished moments, and may people flock to You over me as a result. Please help me to desire this and work on it. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.